REFLECTOR: Making Velocities easier to build?

[nmflyer1 at aol.com]

I really try to be patient, but perhaps my carreer field prohibits that. How about making parts that are true & correct?  That may surely make things easier and faster, without changing the build ratio of parts! Twice I have received incorrect nose gears! I have been waiting for a simple answer on the next step on my own nose gear since Velocity signed for the part last Friday. Still no answer. I could bring up the rest of the problems I have had if you like. 


I have a pretty simple rule in my life, that is do not expect more from others than you are willing to do yourself. If I did my business like this, there would be dead people scattered all over the country. So please, do things correct, have a GOOD quality control program, and when an obvious defect shows up Address it! 



Feel free to justify why I have to pay over and over again for defective parts, shipping and poor service. 



Kurt Winker

505-610-3676





-----Original Message-----
From: Scott Baker <sbakr at comcast.net>
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list <reflector at tvbf.org>
Sent: Wed, Sep 30, 2009 6:53 pm
Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: Making Velocities easier to build?




I think that pioneering Velocity kit builders will testify that many changes have taken place over the history of the company.  Kits today are much easier and quicker to build then ever before.  The redesign of parts has taken an evolutionary process, rather than a wholesale re-make of the way the aircraft go toge
ther.

The 51% compliance rule that pertains to Experimental Amateur Built aircraft definately influences what a kit company can and cannot do.  Regional FAA offices (MIDO and/or FSDO) often apply different interpretations to the same set of rules that are established by the FAA for our industry.  The Seattle office, for instance, agrees with the concept of a 2-weeks to taxi program, while the Orlando office flatly refuses to accept something of this sort.  Much mention has been made to the FAA's reorganization of the "51% Rule".  14-months ago at Oshkosh I met with Frank Paskiewicz, the FAA's "top dog" with regards to FAA licensing of aircraft in the Experimental airworthiness catagory.  Paskiewicz promised to "level the playing field" for all kit manufacturers across the country - meaning we will all soon be following the same set of rules.  The FAA is most definately working on this task; and in fact, Velocity has a meeting scheduled next month with the FAA National Kit Evaluation Team (NKET) for an interactive session and study of how composite airframes blend into FAA's new way of looking at the 51% compliance rules.  We've yet to see exactly what the FAA has in mind.  Getting back to Paskiewicz and the promise of a "level playing field", this could mean that all aircraft companies will be able to organize a rapid build kit like Epic and Glasair - or - everyone might be going back to making aircraft doing things the "hard way". 
Still, the FAA understands that the more components and sub-assemblies a factory provides, generally speaking, quality and safety performance is better than if a true amatuer were doing the work in a home/workshop environment.  Regardless, the Velocity Standard and XL kits, in their present form and including fastbuild options, are grandfathered as "compliant" with the FAA's 51% rule.  We are optimistic that the FAA will embrace the idea of more factory made parts and sub-assemblies.

Scott B



----- Original Message ----- 

From: Reiff Lorenz 

To: reflector at tvbf.org 

Sent: Wednesday, September 30, 2009 5:12 PM

Subject: REFLECTOR: Making Velocities easier to build?





 

I downloaded the November issue of Kitplanes an came across this quote by the CEO of Velocity on page 33. It was in response to the question: How has the homebuilt aircraft industry changed over the last 25 years?

 

====================

In our business, the time it takes to

build an airplane is critical. The FAA

has allowed certain conditions to exist

now where a builder can come to the factory

and pay for professional assistance

from factory-trained staff. That cuts the

time the builder must spend building

to a fraction of what it used to be, and

that is the most significant change we’ve

had in the industry. The builder gets

enough experience building to maintain

the aircraft safely and apply, legally, for

the Repairman’s Certifi
cate, and he/she

gets an airplane that has been built to

factory quality specifications. That’s a

monumental change.

 

It will be a benefit to any manufacturers

that can afford to set up this kind of

builders assistance program. We estimate

for Velocity it will cost upwards of

$200,000 to set up the program, because

presently the parts we make are designed

where the builder must build 51% of the

airplane using time as the measurement;

now we will go back and modify every

mold that we have so that no longer does

the builder have to do something with

those parts. They will be molded such

that the labor for the builder decreases.

It will be more expensive, but someone

who can afford [a $300,000 project]

does not have a lot of time to build, and

will see this as an attractive program.

 

Velocity CEO Duane Swing

 

=================== 

 

He seems to be talking about changes ahead for the Velocity builder who wants to assemble an aircraft but not fabricate as many components. Anybody heard of the program that he mentions setting up? This seems to run contrary to what the FAA has been saying in their recent review of the 51% rule. I'd love to hear all your opinions.

 

Reiff Lorenz

Velocity builder wanna-be

(hoping to hit the lottery for  $300,000)

 





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